<![CDATA[Budget Airline - Come share your experience]]>

zbear:
Do all budget airlines charge bank service fee for payment? I know Jetstar charges $18 per person. It adds up quite a bit on the air ticket so it doesn't seem cheap in the end.

Yes. Most, if not all, Low cost carriers charge a credit card processing fee (often higher than the merchant fee that the bank charges them). The amount varies from airline to airline. This fee is waived, however, for some credit cards (typically their co-branded cards).

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/topic/86991/budget-airline-come-share-your-experienceRSS for NodeSun, 26 Apr 2026 00:27:08 GMTFri, 24 Jun 2016 01:45:50 GMT60<![CDATA[Reply to Budget Airline - Come share your experience on Thu, 23 Jun 2016 14:14:45 GMT]]>Do all budget airlines charge bank service fee for payment? I know Jetstar charges $18 per person. It adds up quite a bit on the air ticket so it doesn’t seem cheap in the end.

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1692438https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1692438Thu, 23 Jun 2016 14:14:45 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Budget Airline - Come share your experience on Wed, 15 Jun 2016 09:59:53 GMT]]>My take is budget airlines are for budget travelers -- like my family. Thanks to the really cheap fares that we could fly 4 times a year before kiddo attend pri school, and continuing to do so during the school holidays.


First experience with Ryan air in 2003, London to Rome at less than 50pound one way.
2005 - Freedom air from Melbourne to Dunedine,NZ - old aircraft with cabin pressure issue

For recent years, we favour Scoot as it offered promo rates during the launches of new destination, usually below 1k for family of 3 (with normally 1x20kg check in bag) or 0kg to and 40kg back if we expect to shop. Scoot has the best aircraft (in terms of leg rooms and condition of carrier) compared to Tiger and Jetstar, while AirAsiaX's aircrafts are not as bad as the former 2.

Japan's Peach Aviation is not bad but they have strict rules on the check-in bag, they only allow one piece of less than 20kg paid bag(unlike other LCC which has no limit as long all bags add up to 20kg), and the checked bag must have total linear dimension of less than 203cm, we ended up paying oversize baggage fees for our camping table and chairs from Osaka to Hokkaido. (yes we are crazy over car-camping)

We think that budget airlines enable us to fly often, as to us it's just to get us to our destination.

I think LCC is not suitable for travelers if:
*your holiday starts from the moment you step out of homeland
*you need to fashion show and post on social media every day
*you are a shopaholic 😄

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1690076https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1690076Wed, 15 Jun 2016 09:59:53 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Budget Airline - Come share your experience on Tue, 14 Jun 2016 07:16:46 GMT]]>

MyPillow:
floppy:

[quote=\"MyPillow\"]
I find the air pressure in budget air line uncomfortable - so keep it below 2hrs flight for short flight only.

The air pressure in both LCC and FSC should be the same for the same make of aircraft. LCCs, though, tend to make one feel claustrophobic due to the tight seating and higher pax load.

Hmm. .. I get ear pain n ear blocked easily on tiger, jet star , air Asia , never try scoot yet . Flight to kl, Indonesia n Phuket

I thought was air pressure issues on board LCC?[/quote]Tigerair, Jetstar, AirAsia - Airbus 320 family.
Could it be that the aircraft type is not to your body's liking 😉

Scoot is a Boeing 787. Most of the new generation aircraft are better at regulating cabin pressure (n.b. the Airbus 320 family is almost a 30 year old design).

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1689622https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1689622Tue, 14 Jun 2016 07:16:46 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Budget Airline - Come share your experience on Tue, 14 Jun 2016 05:11:26 GMT]]>

floppy:
MyPillow:


I find the air pressure in budget air line uncomfortable - so keep it below 2hrs flight for short flight only.

The air pressure in both LCC and FSC should be the same for the same make of aircraft. LCCs, though, tend to make one feel claustrophobic due to the tight seating and higher pax load.

Hmm. .. I get ear pain n ear blocked easily on tiger, jet star , air Asia , never try scoot yet . Flight to kl, Indonesia n Phuket

I thought was air pressure issues on board LCC?

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1689590https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1689590Tue, 14 Jun 2016 05:11:26 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Budget Airline - Come share your experience on Tue, 14 Jun 2016 04:54:48 GMT]]>

MyPillow:

I find the air pressure in budget air line uncomfortable - so keep it below 2hrs flight for short flight only.
The air pressure in both LCC and FSC should be the same for the same make of aircraft. LCCs, though, tend to make one feel claustrophobic due to the tight seating and higher pax load.

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1689585https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1689585Tue, 14 Jun 2016 04:54:48 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Budget Airline - Come share your experience on Tue, 14 Jun 2016 02:50:38 GMT]]>I brought my tablet onboard, loaded with Kdrama :oops:

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1689547https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1689547Tue, 14 Jun 2016 02:50:38 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Budget Airline - Come share your experience on Tue, 14 Jun 2016 02:36:31 GMT]]>I will try to book early to get reasonable rates for full service airlines

I find the air pressure in budget air line uncomfortable - so keep it below 2hrs flight for short flight only.

I really need food n movies on board + wine + beverages… Hehehe
Else I got headache or nausea. Need to munch to keep sanity

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1689543https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1689543Tue, 14 Jun 2016 02:36:31 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Budget Airline - Come share your experience on Mon, 13 Jun 2016 18:17:05 GMT]]>Flew budget to Hangzhou and Xi’an. At that time Silkair did not fly Hangzhou only jetstar. Took tiger to Xi’an. Picked budget only because they have direct flights. While I don’t like budget. I don’t like China domestic flights even more. Paid extra for first row seats so space was ok. I will only fly budget to places where regular airlines don’t go, and must pay for first row seats!

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1689483https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1689483Mon, 13 Jun 2016 18:17:05 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Budget Airline - Come share your experience on Mon, 13 Jun 2016 13:50:01 GMT]]>Scoot is by far the best in the region but it's a tad pricey. Like the new aircraft (B787): clean lavatories and ample leg room esp biz class. Took 5h and 7h flt via Scoot and no issue at all with no-frills, as they were red-eyes.


I used to take a lot of Jetstar flts to/fro HKG and Tiger Airways to/fro MFM, SZE and CAN. Not that I like to chiong with the other passengers on Tiger, but the LCC timings were perfect for my private weekend getaways, as compared to what regular carriers like CZ/MU/SQ/CX/CA were offering then. 😉

I like \"7-11\" bentos esp Nasi Briyani and Soy Chix Rice, Nissan cup noodles and cold sandwiches, as that's what I eat on land sometimes. I usually bring along my own mineral water, but will occasionally order a cup of hot Nescafe, Boh Tea or Milo if I'm cold. Anyway, I seldom need to take them onboard as I'd hv eaten enough at the airport before boarding lah.

I'm not the type who'll watch 120min movies nor sappy KDs on tablets if the journey is less than 4 hrs. Note that your neck will ache if you place your tablet on your lap for 3 hrs, cos you won't be able to place it on the tray table throughout the flt for self-explanatory reasons. I'm happy with my HP games, travel mags, inflight shop catalogues, newspapers, mp3 on my HP. No. Actually, I'm happier in lalaland... :evil:

My outbound baggage is very light so I only pay for the return leg baggage top-up.

Seat selection is a must if it's a red-eye.


Other LCCs I had taken before in EU and India:

1. Monarch
2. ThomsonFly (formerly Britannia Airways)
3. Jet Airways (semi-LCC)

(1) and (2) existed long before RyanAir and easyJet were founded. I recalled having to buy F&B from the flight attendant who pushed the cart down the aisle. The choice of drinks and snacks were more or less the same as those offered on EU trains.


However, we avoided LCCs when we had to tow a tot. That was the era when the Budget Terminal was still around. Hated the long walk and up the stairs! We strictly took SQ, BA and other estab carriers when kid was below 5.

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1689434https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1689434Mon, 13 Jun 2016 13:50:01 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Budget Airline - Come share your experience on Mon, 13 Jun 2016 05:47:14 GMT]]>A couple of budget flights that I had taken (some more often than others):


AirAsia (Malaysia and Indonesia)
Tigerair (Singapore and Australia)
Jetstar (Singapore and Australia)
Citilink
Wings Air
Lion Air
Malindo (not a true budget carrier, more of a hybrid)

Longest being Singapore to Melbourne via Darwin same day connection (effectively 2 separate journeys) on Jetstar.
Shortest being the hop to Kuala Lumpur.

I don’t mind low cost carriers, as long as they don’t burn a hole in my pocket.

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1689299https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1689299Mon, 13 Jun 2016 05:47:14 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Budget Airline - Come share your experience on Mon, 13 Jun 2016 03:19:26 GMT]]>

tankee:
Flew budget for the first time recently.


Total price was just marginally cheaper than regular.

Made the mistake of buying 20kg for all for the onward flight.


What i do not like are :
- Very strange design to have the lights and sevice buttons on the top of the arm-rest. And the carpet was super worn out especially on the aisles where the wheels of their carts run over.
- First airline to ask me to remove my noise cancellation earphones during takeoff and landing.
- Meal is served with 2 choices of canned soft-drinks only.
- \"outside\" food not allowed.
Which airline was this?

You sound like a fussy flier. What you have listed are least of concerns to me. Budget is not suitable for fussies 🙂

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1689238https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1689238Mon, 13 Jun 2016 03:19:26 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Budget Airline - Come share your experience on Mon, 13 Jun 2016 03:10:58 GMT]]>Flew budget for short trips over the past years when it made sense (financially/timing). So far my fav is Scoot. The braised chicken rice is a winner (for me). When booking budget, I will typically minimize luggage when leaving SG, and max when coming back. Usually omit food unless it’s that chicken rice from Scoot. I won’t smuggle food - if I didn’t buy, I will fast during the flight.


Tiger was the worst experience. Super tight seats, and I have this impression it’s always late. Had some bad experiences in the past.

But I do like budget airlines allowing me to buy one way without any penalties like full service. End of day, if it saves only a little compared to full service, I will still go back to full service.

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1689229https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1689229Mon, 13 Jun 2016 03:10:58 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Budget Airline - Come share your experience on Mon, 13 Jun 2016 02:40:06 GMT]]>Flew budget for the first time recently.


Total price was just marginally cheaper than regular.

Made the mistake of buying 20kg for all for the onward flight.


What i do not like are :
- Very strange design to have the lights and sevice buttons on the top of the arm-rest. And the carpet was super worn out especially on the aisles where the wheels of their carts run over.
- First airline to ask me to remove my noise cancellation earphones during takeoff and landing.
- Meal is served with 2 choices of canned soft-drinks only.
- "outside" food not allowed.

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1689221https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1689221Mon, 13 Jun 2016 02:40:06 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Budget Airline - Come share your experience on Mon, 13 Jun 2016 01:25:32 GMT]]>I did Jetstar and Scoot.


Will never do Jetstar again bcos seats were uncomfortable and legroom was too small. Food was awful too.

Read that Scoot’s planes are old SIA planes and found it not much diff from main carriers, but need to catch a good deal. Otherwise, it can be even more expensive than some regular carriers.

I have taken Scoot a few times bcos it’s comfortable. 5-hour and 7-hour flights. Will try an 8-hour flight this year. The only gripe is it doesn’t have in-flight entertainment. Food is bearable but may not suit everybody’s palate.

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1689201https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1689201Mon, 13 Jun 2016 01:25:32 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Budget Airline - Come share your experience on Mon, 13 Jun 2016 00:54:04 GMT]]>took airasia … and dont like it

price unless book really in advance else no cheap than normal airline

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1689189https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1689189Mon, 13 Jun 2016 00:54:04 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Budget Airline - Come share your experience on Sun, 12 Jun 2016 12:45:00 GMT]]>Agree that budget airlines are only for short distance. Took TigerAir before and paid extra for the first row. Much more leg space and treated like "first class" cos has boarding priority. haha!

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1689090https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1689090Sun, 12 Jun 2016 12:45:00 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Budget Airline - Come share your experience on Sun, 12 Jun 2016 09:03:28 GMT]]>Scoot is the best of all budget airline, seating area is like normal economy airline. My rules for budget is always less than 4hr. Anything more than that will be big torture especially on tiger, jetstar, airasia.

]]>https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1689056https://forum.kiasuparents.com/post/1689056Sun, 12 Jun 2016 09:03:28 GMT